This invention relates to the modular construction of buildings and more particularly to the use of a modular system of load-bearing concrete panels and connectors to build housing.
It is known to construct buildings using rigid frameworks such as wooden studs or steel girders, and providing external covering material such as wooden sheeting or concrete panels and internal coverings such as drywall.
The construction of such buildings is expensive and time consuming and requires special materials, tools and expertise. This is especially true for the construction of buildings that are fire-resistant and capable of withstanding tornadoes, earthquakes, moisture related damage and insect infestation.
It is also known to use modular systems, comprising prefabricated load-bearing panels. If created from concrete, such panels are often very heavy and have little insulating value. Insulation does not adhere well to concrete and the resulting panels are not composite in nature. Further surface finishing requires the use of craftsmen.
With an eventual shortage of natural building materials such as lumber and the lack of skilled craftsmen in many areas of the world, the current invention provides a modular, rapid, construction system that does not require conventional fasteners and is easily put together with minimal skill.
A modular construction system is provided for erecting buildings with a minimum of tools or specialized knowledge. The resulting structure and its"" material of manufacture ensure it is substantially impervious to environmental hazards, particularly relevant in more primitive locations.
High strength composite concrete panels utilize plasticized high strength concrete. The panels can be precision factory produced for hand assembly in the field and are provided in both corrugated and channel or ribbed forms. Panels can be pre-formed with openings such as window""s and doors and have pre-finished surfaces. Light, hollow corrugated panels have a zigzag high strength concrete shape sandwiched and secured with adhesive between two flat high strength concrete panels. For panels applied to the building exterior, low-weight, ultra low tensile aerated concrete can be added between ribs as insulation and added rigidity.
The composite concrete panels integrate edge connection means which interlock to each other and to primary concrete building components such as complimentary pilings, wall footings, crown beams and roof purlin connectors. These connectors are particularly amenable for installation by hand.
As a result, structures, such as housing, can be erected on-site, with a minimum of equipment and without the requirement for craftsmen.
In one embodiment, the edge connection means comprise C-shaped FRP extrusion for forming a mortise about the periphery of the panels. For composite corrugated panels, the mortises are formed of extruded plastic, sandwiched between high strength concrete sheets. In channel panels and building components, the mortise preferably take the form of dovetail grooves formed directly in the panel""s concrete. Each of the C-shaped or dovetail mortises accepts one lateral half of a pultruded epoxy, fiber-reinforced joiner or tenon insert having an X-shaped cross-section. When mortises of components and panels are facing or adjoining each other, they form a cavity into which these X-connectors can be inserted as a tenon, locking the components and panels, or panel to panel, together. Unlike concrete, the X-connector tenons are elastic and are forgiving of misalignment and movement.
Using the X-connector tenons, a floor channel panel having a downward facing groove can be locked to a piling having an upward facing and complementary groove. The bottom of a wall panel can be locked to the floor panel. A crown beam can be locked to the top of the wall panel and the bottom of a roof panel can be locked to the crown beam.
Preferably, the crown beam has a low profile by providing a greater lateral dimension than height. This unconventional orientation also aids in providing lateral strength to resist roof-spreading loads and transferring them vertically into the walls. Advantageously, the lateral extension also make it possible to secure exterior gutter and interior valences thereto, preferably using the same X-connector tenons.
Further, adjoining roof panels can be connected using purlin connectors having a deep depending rib portion for adding extra beam section and strength to the roof structure.
In the broadest form of the invention, a method of modular concrete construction comprises providing two or more lightweight composite concrete building components having one or more linear peripheral edges formed with linear dovetailed fitting mortises, providing one or more flaring tenons, aligning two adjacent building components with facing fitting mortises, and joining the aligned panels by inserting one or more of the flaring tenons along the peripheral edge and into the facing fitting mortises so that the panels cannot be separated.
Preferably this method is applied to the formation of walls panels for forming a walled structure, all of which are joined using the mortises and tenons. This method of construction can be extended to form a plurality of components for forming a wide crown beam which rests atop the walled structure and supports a plurality of roof panels resting thereon.
More preferably, additional building components such as floor panels can be similarly formed. Using the lightweight composite concrete, corrugated panels can be formed of a profiled or corrugated sheet glued sandwiched between two sheets. These corrugated panels, fitted with mortises, can be used a beams as part of a suspension system, resting on piles, or assembled as interior partitions.